Aod vs Five speed

If you want the fun factor, do the 5 speed. If you want consistency then go auto. Basically since you have niether, now is the time to do it right.

buy a good AOD with a manual valve body and you can shift it

they are fun but get to be a pain sometimes we have a Dynamic Mighty Mite C4 in our 347 car and it is the coolest tranny i have ever shifted. it shift so hard and fast its like you never stop pulling

This your decision and yours only. I have learned if you want a 5-speed, and settle on an auto you will never be completely happy with it. With that said if you don't have a strong preference, then sticking with a built auto might be the way to go aout it. Remember, its you who has to drive the car!

My opinion, toss a 5-speed in there and never look back.

/\ Exactly. Personally, an auto would take 70% of the fun out of driving a car for me. That's just not driving a car imo, it's sitting along for the ride. If all you want to do is bracket race then auto is the way to go because of the consistency. If your car is just a fun street/strip car, go 5 spd. It will probably cost more to build a 5 spd to take the abuse, and add onto that putting clutches and syncros in once in a while. But it's worth it to me. I'm far more impressed seeing a 10 sec stick car than a 9 sec auto. Fast stick cars are just badass. All that being said, you don't seem biased towards either, so living without a stick car might be okay for you. Maybe auto is the way to go. As long as you enjoy it, because you're the one driving it.

Watch a stick car launch at 7000 RPM, and grab second gear with the front tires in the air, and then bring them back up in second gear, and try and tell me that doesn't look like a blast!!!

I say go with the 5 spd.. I wouldnt have it any other way..

5spd!

I'm going to recommend the 5-speed as well, for the fun factor. Especially since the car won't see alot of track time. Like you I never considered an auto until I drove one that was built (valve body, stall, upgrades). Then I drove a friends coupe with a built AOD and 2800 stall. At the time I was looking for a stockish Fox bod for DD but not necessarily an auto. After driving his I knew that with at least a gear and shift kit I could deal with an AOD. Plus I was just tired of driving a stick every day in So Cal traffic. The AOD is nice when I just want to sit back and ride. It also makes for a good stop-light warrior.

More often than not though I find myself wishing the car was a stick. Once the tranny goes I too will have a decision to make. I had been looking forward to dropping in a beefed up AOD with a higher stall but lately I've been considering converting the car to 5-speed. I don't have big plans for the car so a pricey aftermarket AOD is becoming hard to justify. I like the idea of the full manual but it's still not quite the same. Basically what I'm trying to say is that I can't be of any help. lol

My car currently has an AOD and I absolutely cant stand it anymore so Im in the process of buying everything I need to convert it to a T5.
I dont like the way my AOD shifts even with a shift kit and driving an auto just isnt much fun. I find myself shifting gears for the hell of it when cruising.

I do race the car at the track so an auto is nice there but 95% of my driving isnt racing so Id rather make it more fun to drive.

With a combo like that PJB you are going to have a blast with a stick. 1st gear might take some getting used to.

I hope its more fun. Driving it with the AOD just sucks.

From what Ive heard 1st is useless, especially with 4.10's.

It is very easy to overwhelm 1st gear but as long as you have a decent tire, and a little patience, it's doable. I have long since become addicted to how responsive the car is with the 4.10. It is ready to pounce, any time, from any gear. I'm running a set of old Dunlops right now and at times it is very hard finding traction. I use 1st just long enough to get me off the line then quickly reach for 2nd, which you will find pulls almost as hard as your AOD 1st, at speed.

If you have any traction issues, such as right-tire fire, you definitely want to clear that up. lol Many people feel that a 4.10 is overkill for a street car and it is hard to argue with that imo. It becomes a matter of preference. You can always drop down to a 3.73, which I'd say is the universal favorite for the 5.0/T5. I say get the t5 in there then decide. lol

Ive got a set of M/T ET streets for the track so I dont really have a traction issue now.
I dont plan on swapping the gears for a while, if I ever do.

One of my friends has a T5 with 4.10's and a blower and runs 11's.

I can't really say there's one tranny that's truly better than the other in the AOD vs. T-5 comparison, because it all depends on whether you're talking stock or modified, and what you plan on doing with either.

1. A plain AOD is nice for cruising around and if you DD a lot in heavy traffic (*cough* Loop 202 in Phoenix at 5pm *cough*), or if you already have another car with a stick and just want something as a backup in case you twist an ankle or break a leg or something. If you're not well-versed in racing the 1/4-mile, an auto is a lot easier to launch than a stick, and almost always results in more consistent times ... plus no chance of a missed gear destroying anything. They're also nice for chicks that want to feel like they're all badass for driving a 'Stang, but don't know how to (or can't) drive a manual tranny car.

2. A stock T-5 makes boring driving seem a lot more fun, weighs less, has a lower powertrain loss percentage of horsepower to the rear wheels, is WAY easier when doing a fluid drain/refill, and it's way easier to change a clutch on a T-5 in your driveway than it is to drop an AOD and put on a different torque converter (unless you don't mind pulling the motor).

3. A built-up T-5 - that is, a QUALITY built-up T-5 - is still fun and all, but all the usual problems of having a manual still apply. Additionally, even a built T-5 is generally not going to handle as much abuse and power as a built AOD or other auto.

4. For the cost of what a seriously-built T-5 and a quality clutch kit would cost you, you could just as easily (if not more cheaply) have a well-built auto and torque converter, plus you'll never have to worry about missed shifts or inconsistent runs.

5. A manual valve body AOD would be a sort of compromise between the two in that you can have that fun of bangin' through the gears, yourself, without having to fool with a clutch pedal, missed shifts, and/or worrying about keeping your RPM's up. The downside is that it might get a bit annoying for use in a DD car, as you can't exactly switch off the manual mode like you could in a Select-Shift kind of new car.